March 14 - Wintter [sic] Watts (The Musical Birthday Series, 8th Annual Cycle)

Previous March 14th posts may be found here: Georg Philipp Telemann (2019),  Shirley Scott; Johann Strauss Sr (2020), Quincy Jones (2021), Johann Gottlieb Goldberg; Luther Henderson (2022), Robert Lucas Pearsall (2023), Casey" Jones (2024), and Johann Strauss the Elder (2025)

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Wintter Watts (14 March 1884 – 1 November 1962) was an American composer of art songs. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two for T

Was Wintter Watts annoyed that he

Was baptized with an extra "T,"

Which meant when singers chose to sing

His songs concerning love or sspring

The programme seemed to be misprinted,

And hinted that the venue stinted

When editing the final proofs

For gaucheries, and gaffes, and goofs,

Which in its turn left Wintter gutted

To see his given name tut-tutted?

Envoi

It's wise to heed linguistic fetters

Even  in the Arts and Lettters.

 

 

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March 13 - Neil Sedaka (The Musical Birthday Series, 8th Annual Cycle)

Previous postings on Hugo Wolf may be found here: 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, Sammy Kaye (2023), Hugo Wolf (2024), and Hugo Wolf (2025)

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Neil Sedaka (13 March 1939 – 27 February 2026) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keeping Us Together 

Neil Sedaka, as you've read,

Is only very lately dead.

He had an easy-going mode,

And though his career had ebbed and flowed,

His songs remained benign and sunny,

And even, on occasion, funny,

(And yes, of course, they made him money),

But even tabloids seemed to lack a

Reason to attack Sedaka.

 

 

 

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March 12 - Robert Lowry (The Musical Birthday Series, 8th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for March 12th may be found here: Thomas Augustine Arne (2019),  Gordon MacRae (2020), Liza Minnelli (2021), Thomas Augustine Arne; Paul Weston (2023), Thomas Augustine Arne (2023), Alexandre Guilmant (2024), and Thomas Augustine Arne (2025)

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Robert Lowry (March 12, 1826 – November 25, 1899) was an American preacher who became a popular writer of gospel music in the mid-to-late 19th century.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shall We?

I do not know if Richard Lowry

Had a daughter with a dowry,

But "Shall We Gather at the River"

Would have earned some cash to give her.

 

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Hymn Time

When hymn composer Robert Lowry

Penned "I Need Thee Every Hour," he

Clearly felt the text sincerely,

And believed that Life, if lived severely,

Freed one from the World (or nearly).

And writing music as a Baptist,

It followed that his texts were aptest,

When sentiments were at their raptest,

So shunning liturgies and creeds, he

Wrote "All the Way My Savior Leads Me."

 

 

If you enjoy these posts, please help me, and consider sharing.  [Also, please visit my other blog: Alternate Takes: Great Art Repurposed.]  

 

March 11 - Lawrence Welk; William Vincent Wallace (The Musical Birthday Series, 8th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for March 11th may be found here:  Carl Ruggles (2019), Lawrence Welk (2020), Henry Cowell; Astor Piazzolla (2021), Lawrence Welk; Bobby McFerrin (2022), Lawrence Welk; Mercer Ellington (2023), Lawrence Welk (2024), and Graham Lyle (2025)

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Lawrence Welk (11 March 1903 – 17 May 1992) was an American bandleader and accordionist who had a successful television career. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Safe

A nineteen-sixties Sunday rite

Was Lawrence Welk on Sunday night;

And though each costume and each set

Was blandly corny, don't forget

That Grandma knew it was foreseeable

That nothing would be disagreeable.

 

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William Vincent Wallace (11 March 1812 – 12 October 1865) was an Irish composer and pianist active on three continents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just Sayin'

Wallace was a brilliant musician, but even his famous Maritana is now performed only by amateurs. — "Australian Dictionary of Biography" at adb.anu.edu.au/biography

Even if an opera by William Vincent Wallace

Is given a production that the critics say is flawless, —

You don't need to call us.

 

 

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March 10 - Bad Bunny; Peter DeRose (The Musical Birthday Series, 8th Annual Cycle)

For previous March 10th posts, check here: John Bacchus Dykes (2019), Arthur Honegger (2020), Camillo Schumann (2021), Lorenzo da Ponte; Pablo de Sarasate (2022), Bix Beiderbecke; Dudley Buck (2023), Lorenzo da Ponte (2024), and John Bacchus Dykes (2025)

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Bad Bunny (b. 10 March 1994) is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, record producer, and occasional professional wrestler.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Lovely Island

Bad Bunny, a cultural beacon,

Is a passionate proud Puerto Rican;

He decided to go

To his Superbowl show

And sing in the language they speak in.

 

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No hablo español

Bad Bunny, on Superbowl night,

Gave a fright to America's Right;

Fox News called it clannish

To be rapping in Spanish,

And complained that the man wasn't White.

 

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Peter DeRose (10 March 1896 – 23 April 1953) was an American composer of jazz and pop music best known for "Deep Purple" and "A Marshmallow World."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Parrish the Thought

"Deep Purple," as written by Peter ReRose,

   Was conceived for the piano, with words added later,

And that is the version that everyone knows,

   And the reason we're cheering DeRose its creator.

 

 

If you enjoy these posts, please help me, and consider sharing.  [Also, please visit my other blog: Alternate Takes: Great Art Repurposed.]